Topless Kate photos lead to formal investigation

Two people involved in the publication of topless photos of Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, last year have been formally placed under investigation for invasion of privacy.

Ernesto Mauri, a chief executive of the publishing house Mondadori, was charged for allowing the topless photos to be published in the French edition of the Mondadori-owned Closer Magazine in September, the Telegraph reported.

A photographer for the regional paper La Provence, Valerie Suau, has also been charged for taking photos of Kate in a swimsuit.

The photos were taken using a telephoto lens from a large distance away.

La Provence did not publish the scandal-inciting nude images, and investigators are still trying to conclude if Suau took the topless photos sold to Closer.

Suau is "not concerned" over the charges, a source at La Provence said, and has admitted to taking the bikini photos but not topless.

The investigation has been run by French authorities, who were asked by St. James's Palace to investigate after the photos appeared in September from the Duke and Duchess's vacation at a French villa.

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